Families to get €4,500 lifeline
Cut in childcare fees and taxes, plus energy credits ease the burden
YOUNG families could be more than €4,500 better off after the Budget, which the Taoiseach has pledged will ‘help people deal with the cost-of-living crisis’.
Major cuts to childcare fees have been introduced, alongside a series of tax changes and lump-sum payments.
Those with pre-school children will see a 25% reduction in weekly childcare fees, worth up to €175 per month, or €2,106 per year per child. Families will also receive a double Child Benefit payment in November, and primary school books will be free next year.
There will be electricity credits of €600 for all households, in three instalments of €200, with the first due before Christmas.
In addition to the potential €4,500 for young families, there will also be a one-off €500 for those on the Working Family Payment, and €500 for those on the Carer’s Grant.
Anyone in receipt of a social welfare payment will get an increase of €12 per week, with proportionate increases for qualified adults.
Eligibility thresholds will also change, with the Working Family Payment to be increased by €40 per week and the Qualified Child Payment increase, for under 12s, to be raised to €42 per week and, for over 12s, to €50 per week.
The monthly Domiciliary Care Allowance will rise by €20.50 to €330 per month, made available to parents of babies who have to remain in hospital for six months.
The threshold for the higher rate of income tax has risen by €3,200 to €40,000, with proportionate increases for married couples and civil partners.
The main tax credits will also increase by €75, including personal and employee credit.
Many families will also be relieved to learn that the price of petrol and diesel did not go up.
The Children’s Rights Alliance (CRA) said Budget 2023 had gone further than any before to address the cost of education, with free school books for primary school pupils from next September, but that it had failed to deliver enough effective targeted supports for the most disadvantaged children.
Tanya Ward, chief executive of the alliance, said: ‘Framed as a “cost of living budget”, what we are seeing today is a suite of measures to help families keep their heads just above water. The cost of education has a significant impact on families, particularly those most disadvantaged,’ she said.
‘For years, we have heard from parents about how much stress and pressure they are under to get their children out the door to school. Many have nothing left over after books to afford extracurricular activities or school trips. Removing this barrier is a significant step towards delivering free education but we need to see the detail in how this is rolled out.’
Julie Ahern, legal, policy and services director for the CRA, added: ‘We welcome the reduction in the cost of childcare which will alleviate some pressure from families across the country.
‘To retain qualified staff that ensure high-quality service for children, they must be paid accordingly.’
She said people were well aware they were heading into one of the toughest winters of recent times. ‘Given the current cost of living crisis, any increase in the core social welfare payments is welcome as these payments are a core lifeline for so many families,’ she said.
‘It is most welcome to see an increase in the Working Family Payment threshold by €40 a week, and a once-off payment which will reach more families on low incomes. However, to just Free books welcomed: Tanya Ward of the CRA stand still, Budget 2023 had to invest in the Qualified Child Increase (a welfare payment for children, available for parents who are on social welfare) but today’s announcement falls short. ‘Families with older children have much higher costs and will not reap the benefits of some of the more robust measures announced today such as free primary school books. For these families, an increase in the QCI would have been a crucial intervention.’
One Family, Ireland’s national organisation for people parenting alone, sharing parenting and separating, said it was concerned that the Budget will leave many oneparent families even poorer.
Niamh Kelly, One Family policy manager said: ‘Budget 2023 should have been an opportunity to protect families most in need. Instead, we have a short-sighted Budget which will leave the poorest children in the State even poorer.
‘The increase of €12 for core social welfare payment and €2 additional payment for children will do nothing to mitigate against poverty. We have another Budget that fails to target one-parent families.’